Apparatus and method for determining core temperature of food

Abstract

The invention proposes a method of determining core temperature of food in a closed container, the method including the steps of: adjusting heating power supplied to the container to allow internal temperature of the container to change within a predetermined duration; obtaining information related to the change of internal temperature of the container; and determining the core temperature of the food based on the information related to the change of internal temperature and predetermined relationships between information related to change of internal temperature of the container and core temperatures of the food. The invention also proposes an apparatus for determining core temperature of food and a food processing device.

Description

[0001]This application is the U.S. National Phase application under 35 U.S.C. §371 of International Application No. PCT / IB2013 / 061372, filed on Dec. 27, 2013, which claims the benefit of Chinese Application No. PCT / CN2012 / 087650 filed on Dec. 27, 2012. These applications are hereby incorporated by reference herein.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The invention relates to food analysis, and particularly relates to apparatuses and method for determining core temperature of food.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Cooking doneness or readiness refers to a status of food being cooked where a good balance of nutrition preservation and taste enhancement is reached. Both undercooking and overcooking give negative consequences in these two aspects, as well as food safety. Food that is undercooked may cause food-borne diseases on its consumers, for the temperature rise and / or its sustaining time are insufficient to kill harmful bacteria or parasites, especially in the inner part of the food. On the ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0006]In view of the issues stated above, it would be advantageous to achieve a more desirable apparatus and method of determining core temperature of food. It would also be advantageous to achieve a low-cost, easy-to-implement and sufficiently accurate apparatus and method of determining core temperature of food, which is suitable for consumer product applications.

[0014]As the relationships between information related to change of internal temperature of the container and core temperatures of the food is pre-obtained, for example, by experiment, as well as the information related to the change of internal temperature can be easily acquired during cooking without destroying the food, the method of the invention enables an more effective and desirable way of determining the core temperature of the food compared to traditional methods.

Problems solved by technology

Both undercooking and overcooking give negative consequences in these two aspects, as well as food safety.

Food that is undercooked may cause food-borne diseases on its consumers, for the temperature rise and / or its sustaining time are insufficient to kill harmful bacteria or parasites, especially in the inner part of the food.

On the other hand, overcooking affects the food taste and texture, for instance due to excessive loss of moisture, and possibly destroys the structure of certain nutrients, which leads to the reduction of their health benefits.

The method is, however, destructive and troublesome, still involving significant amount of manual work.

These methods are non-destructive and some may sense the temperature a few centimeters deep into the object.

However, they either require complex setup thus high cost, or are subject to various disturbing factors thus making the measurement unreliable.

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